Counting critters at the Everett Animal Shelter

The city of Everett operates Snohomish County’s sole public animal shelter. The Everett Animal Shelter also serves the county and other cities. Its mission is to get adoptable animals into good homes and educate folks about spaying, neutering and micro-chipping pets. What animals come in, and what happens to them?

The great majority of animals housed at the shelter are dogs and cats, followed by small mammals (guinea pigs, mice, rats, etc.) and domestic birds. Also housed are rabbits and reptiles — and the occasional tarantula, ram or pig.

In 2012, about one quarter of all the animals that arrived were adopted — an outcome that people at the shelter like to call “tails out the door.”

Last year, the rate of cases that ended in euthanasia declined to 28 percent.

The city’s animal services budget for 2012 was $1.3 million. That covers the shelter and animal control.

The department has 14 full-time employees and some part-timers. The shelter, along Smith Island Road, spans 19,000 square feet.

More than 300 people volunteer there. They work inside and outside the building, said Shannon Delgado, city animal services manager.

“They come together for us and help us out,” she said. Volunteers logged 21,000 hours in 2012.

The shelter’s primary expenses are staffing and supplies.

The shelter always needs donations. Needs vary by season and animal population. For more information, call 1-425-257-6000 ext. 5 or visit bit.ly/SFFHv, which generally includes a current-needs list.